Md. Archdiocese Discloses Accused Priests, Expenses

Sep 26, 2002 | The Washington Post

Roman Catholic Cardinal William Keeler of Baltimore disclosed yesterday that his archdiocese and its insurers have spent more than $5.6 million in the last 20 years on legal settlements, counseling and other expenses stemming from incidents of child sexual abuse by priests.

Keeler also released a list of 56 priests and members of Catholic religious orders who were accused of molesting children while serving in the archdiocese, with some of the allegations dating to the 1950s. Their names were posted on the archdiocese's Web site yesterday, along with the details about which parishes they served, when their alleged misconduct occurred and how church officials handled the case. Previously, the archdiocese had named 28 priests accused of child sexual abuse.

The cardinal's announcement is one of the most comprehensive accountings that any of the nation's Catholic dioceses have provided on the scope and financial cost of child abuse by priests, according to church analysts and victims advocacy groups.

"I think it's extraordinarily significant and may well become the model for all 195 dioceses," said Oklahoma Gov. Frank Keating, chairman of a national lay review board set up by U.S. Catholic bishops to monitor compliance with their new child abuse policies. "This is precisely what the children need, what lay Catholics demand and what God's church must do."

In a letter to the 180,000 registered families in the Baltimore Archdiocese, which includes Howard and Anne Arundel counties, Keeler said he was releasing the information to protect children, encourage more victims to come forward and remove suspicion from priests who are innocent of misconduct. He also said the disclosures were part of the "transparency and openness" called for in the document that U.S. Catholic bishops approved at their June meeting in Dallas to address the church's national abuse scandal.

"Ultimately, there is nothing to be gained by secrecy except the avoidance of scandal," wrote Keeler, who became head of the Baltimore Archdiocese in 1989. "And rather than shrinking from this scandal -- which, too often, has allowed it to continue -- we must address it with humble contrition, righteous anger and public outrage. Telling the truth cannot be wrong."

According to the information it released yesterday, the archdiocese's insurers have negotiated and paid legal settlements totaling $4.1 million in eight abuse cases over the last 20 years. Archdiocesan spokesman Steve Kearney declined to disclose the names of the accused priests in those eight cases, although he said that six of the cases were publicly covered in the news media.

In addition, the archdiocese reported that since 1987, it has spent $419,186 in counseling expenses for abuse victims; $112,520 in legal expenses for accused priests; $387,019 for psychiatric and other medical treatment for suspended priests; and $616,201 for suspended priests' living expenses. Kearney said that only four of the 56 clergy members named yesterday were still receiving any financial support from the archdiocese.

Kearney said the archdiocese did not release pre-1987 spending figures because the records from those years are less reliable.

Few other Catholic Church officials have been willing to provide such financial data. A Washington Post survey in June found that 26 dioceses had released some financial information, including $106 million in acknowledged legal settlements. In May, Bishop Wilton D. Gregory of Belleville, Ill. -- who is also president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops -- disclosed that his diocese had paid out $3.1 million for legal settlements and counseling over the past 10 years.

The Archdiocese of Washington does not plan to make a similar financial disclosure, spokeswoman Susan Gibbs said yesterday. She said that she did not have a dollar figure for "the very few financial settlements" the archdiocese has made and that it does not release "personal medical information," including the amount spent for counseling victims.

Gibbs said that such medical and legal expenses have "primarily come from insurance" and that none of it comes from the money collected under the annual Cardinal's Appeal.

A spokeswoman for the third diocese that covers parts of the Washington area, the Diocese of Arlington, said it is in the process of forming a lay review board that will develop "a communications policy that reflects a commitment to transparency and openness while respecting the privacy and the reputation of the individuals involved."

The 56 priests accused of child sex abuse whose names were released by Keeler yesterday included 26 diocesan priests, 16 priests from religious orders, three brothers in religious orders and 11 priests from other dioceses who allegedly committed abuse while in Baltimore. Also posted is the name of a diocesan priest convicted of possessing child pornography.

None of the men listed is currently serving in any ministry with the archdiocese.

"A number of the allegations cannot be corroborated," the archdiocese said in a statement posted on its Web site, noting that the list includes both clergy who admitted abusing children and clergy who denied it. It said that a few cases were excluded from the list because an investigation concluded that sexual abuse did not occur.

In addition, the archdiocese said it received allegations of abuse by 14 diocesan priests and 12 religious priests or brothers after their deaths. It said it reported those cases to civil authorities and offered counseling to the victims who came forward, but it is not releasing the names of the accused to the public because they cannot be questioned.

"They are no longer a danger to children, and the Lord is now judging them," the archdiocese's statement said.

Please note that you are not considered a client until you have signed a retainer agreement and your case has been accepted by us.Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter. | Attorney Advertising.